Question about Packard Bell Multimedia E156

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.packardbell (More info?)

"Anthony M. Saffer" <anthony.saffer@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:1de062c1.0405150017.74b2e73b@posting.google.com...
> Hello Everyone,
>
> I'm going to use an older PB Multimedia E156 as a network file
server
> and I'm wondering if anyone knows what motherboard/chipset it uses
OR
> what is the maximum size of the hard disk that can be put on board?
> The maching came with a 2.99 GB disk so I am assuming I can probably
> bump that up to maybe...6 GB? Any ideas?
>
> Thanks,
> Anthony

I don't have any specs on it, but I will assume that if its real old
the maximum size will be around 4 GB. With a BIOS update possibly 8 GB
you may want to look in a controller card for around $35 US dollars
and it will then handle very large drives. Do Not Use any BIOS overlay
programs like Ontrack, MaxiBlast, EZ Drive etc. because it will come
back to cause problems later. No matter what anyone else tells you.
Don't use it.

Your running a server may in many cases be a matter of concern for
your ISP. I know that RR frowns upon it and so do many other services
so check it out before you do it.

I hope that helped?

Elector

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.packardbell (More info?)

> I don't have any specs on it, but I will assume that if its real old
> the maximum size will be around 4 GB. With a BIOS update possibly 8 GB
> you may want to look in a controller card for around $35 US dollars
> and it will then handle very large drives. Do Not Use any BIOS overlay
> programs like Ontrack, MaxiBlast, EZ Drive etc. because it will come
> back to cause problems later. No matter what anyone else tells you.
> Don't use it.


Excellent. So then, if I were to buy a new controller card it would
effectively bypass the restrictions that the BIOS places on the size
of the drive? I'm not too keen on updating the BIOS as it's a very old
PC and I'd rather not take the risks.

> Your running a server may in many cases be a matter of concern for
> your ISP. I know that RR frowns upon it and so do many other services
> so check it out before you do it.

It's definately against my ISP's TOS to run a server off of their
network. What I'm wanting to do is to run a wireless file storage
server on my home network and use this PC as that server. Never
exposing it to the internet at all.

> I hope that helped?

Absolutely! I am going to look for new controller cards now. Any
suggestions as to good brands/models?

Thanks,
Anthony

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.packardbell (More info?)

Many IDE controller cards require a motherboard that is at least PCI 2.1
compliant. If your PB is really old, you may want to check your
motherboard. SiSoft Sandra might be able to tell. If your PB motherboard
is PCI 2.0 or less, you may need to search for an older controller card.


"Anthony M. Saffer" <anthony.saffer@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:1de062c1.0405150936.7078aef7@posting.google.com...
> > I don't have any specs on it, but I will assume that if its real old
> > the maximum size will be around 4 GB. With a BIOS update possibly 8 GB
> > you may want to look in a controller card for around $35 US dollars
> > and it will then handle very large drives. Do Not Use any BIOS overlay
> > programs like Ontrack, MaxiBlast, EZ Drive etc. because it will come
> > back to cause problems later. No matter what anyone else tells you.
> > Don't use it.
>
>
> Excellent. So then, if I were to buy a new controller card it would
> effectively bypass the restrictions that the BIOS places on the size
> of the drive? I'm not too keen on updating the BIOS as it's a very old
> PC and I'd rather not take the risks.
>
> > Your running a server may in many cases be a matter of concern for
> > your ISP. I know that RR frowns upon it and so do many other services
> > so check it out before you do it.
>
> It's definately against my ISP's TOS to run a server off of their
> network. What I'm wanting to do is to run a wireless file storage
> server on my home network and use this PC as that server. Never
> exposing it to the internet at all.
>
> > I hope that helped?
>
> Absolutely! I am going to look for new controller cards now. Any
> suggestions as to good brands/models?
>
> Thanks,
> Anthony

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.packardbell (More info?)

"Anthony M. Saffer" <anthony.saffer@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:1de062c1.0405150936.7078aef7@posting.google.com...
> > I don't have any specs on it, but I will assume that if its real
old
> > the maximum size will be around 4 GB. With a BIOS update possibly
8 GB
> > you may want to look in a controller card for around $35 US
dollars
> > and it will then handle very large drives. Do Not Use any BIOS
overlay
> > programs like Ontrack, MaxiBlast, EZ Drive etc. because it will
come
> > back to cause problems later. No matter what anyone else tells
you.
> > Don't use it.
>
>
> Excellent. So then, if I were to buy a new controller card it would
> effectively bypass the restrictions that the BIOS places on the size
> of the drive? I'm not too keen on updating the BIOS as it's a very
old
> PC and I'd rather not take the risks.
>
> > Your running a server may in many cases be a matter of concern for
> > your ISP. I know that RR frowns upon it and so do many other
services
> > so check it out before you do it.
>
> It's definately against my ISP's TOS to run a server off of their
> network. What I'm wanting to do is to run a wireless file storage
> server on my home network and use this PC as that server. Never
> exposing it to the internet at all.
>
> > I hope that helped?
>
> Absolutely! I am going to look for new controller cards now. Any
> suggestions as to good brands/models?
>
> Thanks,
> Anthony

This site had a controller card that is pretty widely known:
http://tinyurl.com/3a7lk

I am sure there are others. such as the site http://tinyurl.com/38opy
(Promise Cards)

The server issue was only a caution. I did not mean to question.

Elector

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.packardbell (More info?)

To help in identifying which PB motherboard it is, what's the BIOS
report on boot-up? Also, what's the CPU?

I've found that the PB machine name is quite useless i.e. Multimedia
A100, Force 1178, Platinum 40 etc may have different motherboards and
peripherals.

Much more diagnostic is which BIOS it uses.

Best regards,
Eric

--
Eric W. Pass (epass@nyx.net) | Lots of game stuff for sale on my
http://www.nyx.net/~epass/home.html | Web page, see URL at left!
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